Mendoza’s Gay Vendimia Festival

Mendoza’s Gay Vendimia festival in Argentina’s beautiful wine capital is the largest LGBT event in the country, aside from Buenos Aires huge gay pride celebration.

Under the slogan ‘Vendimia for Everyone’ the festivities usually take place the second week in March, after the main Grape Harvest Festival ends.

This conservative northern city has a smaller, more demure gay scene than Buenos Aires, but during this week-long celebration Mendoza lets its freak flag fly high and proud.

The Origins of Gay Vendimia

vendimiagay2010kings — 2010 contestants for the title of King of Vendimia Gay

Gay Vendimia started as a joke according to Ricardo ‘Tito’ Bustos, founder and iconic owner of some of Mendoza’s most popular gay nightspots.

Today, the ‘Fiesta de la Vendimia Gay’ has been going on over 20 years, draws revelers from across the globe and hosts 5,000 spectators for the main event.

As in the mainstream festival, there are activities all week long and a campy Las Vegas style grand finale that includes a beauty contest, with the ‘queen’ in this case in drag of course.

Where to Stay During Gay Vendimia

In Mendoza renting a private apartment with the gay-owned
Modigliani Art and Design Suites or the Dot Confort Suites is an excellent choice.

The staff speaks English and the modern-style fully-equipped suites are in the heart of downtown Mendoza. The group also runs an art gallery, Espacio Modlgliani which host events open to guests including exhibitions, live music and wine tastings.

Both options are a bargain too, with prices starting at US$80 per night. It’s important to book in advance during festival events, when prices surge. If these options are full, check out reviews on other Mendoza hotels and hostels.

To find out more or get tickets for the main event, get in touch with the Mendoza Tourism office or head straight to Mendoza’s local gay establishments and get swept up in the fun.

Gay Vendimia Festival Main Event
Saturday, March 10, 2018: Arena Maipú Stadium
• Cost: AR$ $$, price depends on seating

⇒ Take a Half Day Wine Tour in Mendoza

• Modigliani Art and Design Suites

• Dot Confort Suites

Vendimia: Mendoza’s Grape Harvest Festival

The city of Mendoza’s biggest party of the year is the National Grape Harvest Festival, now in its 82nd year.

Fiesta de la Vendimia events begin in January and February throughout the province, and culminate in March, when 40,000 visitors come to celebrate and enjoy the local nectar, awakening the normally sleepy northern city. Aside from an abundance of Malbec, the city-wide party features traditional cuisine, folkloric song and dance, and the main event — a beauty contest to select the ‘Queen of Vendimia.’

Wine connoisseurs from around the world and artists from all over South America descend on Mendoza during this time, creating a carnival-like atmosphere in the streets as the worlds of gauchos, international jet setters and Mendocinos (as locals are known) collide.

Activities take place province-wide in the months leading up to the main event with each of the 18 regions of Mendoza selecting a local contestant for the beauty pageant.

Origins of the Vendimia Festival

Celebration of the harvest in Mendoza has come a long way from its puritanical 17th century roots, when wine was mainly utilized for consecration.

Peasants would offer fruit to the deity of the Virgin of Carrodilla, the celestial patron saint of Mendoza’s vineyards. After the work was done they were finally able to rest and celebrate.

The more irreverent modern-day celebration goes back to 1936 and has evolved into one of the largest wine festivals in the world.

The grand finale starts on Saturday, March 4 with a live show and the introduction of pageant contestants in the Greek-style Frank Romero Day amphitheater. On Sunday, beauty contestants ride along floats in a downtown parade and the local wineries give away free samples to spectators.

The 2008 Vendimia Queen launches an apple from her float. —photo: Jeffrey Tanenhaus

The flashy main event is on Saturday, March 4 this year and repeats for the next two days, when 25,000 fill the theater to see a Mendoza-cum-Las Vegas style performance and watch the crowning of the ‘Queen of Vendimia’ with a tiara made of grape leaves and vines.

The show is followed by a large fireworks display and live music. Those who didn’t secure tickets for the big night can watch it all on a big screen set up in downtown Mendoza’s Plaza Italia. It is also televised across the country.

When the Vendimia Festival is over the party is not — during the second week of March is the Gay Vendimia Festival, which started off as a campy parody but today draws visitors in its own right.

Vendimia 2018: Feb 28- March 8

February 28 ‘Blessing of the fruits’ ceremony.

March 4 First parade of the Vendimia ‘Queens’ competing for the title of Queen of Vendimia, on the city streets

March 5 ‘Carousel of Vendimia’ A daytime parade including typical ‘cowgirls’ in traditional outfits and on horseback

March 5 evening ‘Central Act’ a huge folkloric production with over 1000 participants, coronation of the ‘Queen of Vendimia,’ ending with fireworks from the nearby Cerro de la Gloria in General San Martin park. The night Mendoza lets its hair down and imbibes in plenty of the featured product.

March 6 –The second night repeating the same performance as the previous evening with additional visiting national and international artists

March 8 – The third night repeating the grand finale spectacle with additional national and international artists

→ Check here to check dates on the Mendoza Culture Department page

→ Meandering Mendoza City, Online Walking Tour

→ Mendoza’s Gay Vendima Festival

• It is recommended to book your lodging in advance. Check out these options:
→ Accommodation in Mendoza

Grape Harvest Festival 2011 Events

* This post is outdated, please see the latest Vendimia post.

This year marks the 75th Anniversary of the Vendimia Grape Harvest Festival in Mendoza. Here is the line up for main events:

Friday March 4: Musical performance by the group Altertango. Pageant contestants make their introductions atop floats

Place: Downtown streets
•Time: 10:00 p.m.
• Cost: Free

Saturday March 5th: Daytime parade with beauty contestants and wine offerings

Place: Downtown streets
• Time: 10:00 a.m.
• Cost: free

March 6 Evening:

The main event, this year with a show called ‘Los rostros de la Vendimia’ (The Faces of Vendimia) and the coronation of the winner of the ‘Queen of Venidmia’ beauty contest.

Place: Griego Frank Romero Day Theater
• Time: 9:00 p.m.
• Cost: Ar$22-135

Sunday, March 6: The show ‘El Cuyanazo’ will show off the regional folk music and dance unique to the provinces of San Juan, San Luis and Mendoza. That is followed by a repeat of ‘Los Rostros de la Vendimia.’

Place: Griego Frank Romero Day Theatre
• Time: 7:00 p.m.
• Cost: AR$ 12-35

Monday March 7: Opening acts, Chancho Va and Mendocino rock group Los Coholins, followed by a repeat of previous show, and a performance by the quartet, Banda XXI

Place: Frank Romero Day Theater
• Time: 7:00 p.m.
• Cost: AR$ 12-35

Tickets remain for Sunday and Monday nights.

Gay Nightlife in Mendoza

Gay nightlife in Mendoza isn’t anything near as wild as in Buenos Aires, but thanks to the city’s small size you can meet people and zero in on your preferred scene quite easily. Here are some good places to start, for food and dancing:

Espacio 348 — A gay-friendly bar with a cool oriental décor, decent food, and pretty good music, including their popular ‘Club Zen’ parties.
San Lorenzo 348
Downtown Mendoza
Tel: (0261) – 429-5082

Casa 3 — A fun gay-friendly pub and restaurant that brings in some pretty good DJ’s. The food is better than the typical pub fare and the atmosphere is comfortable.
San Lorenzo 490

• Closed Sundays

La Reserva Pub – A small boisterous pub that hosts theater and music during the week and drag shows on weekend nights.
Rividavia 32
Tel: (0261) 420-3531

• Closed Mondays

Estación Miro — Here you’ll find quite an eclectic mix of gay men and women and many transsexuals dancing the night away. Anything can happen here — and it probably will.
Ejercito de los Andes 656

• Open nights, Thur-Sun

Queen Disco —Mendoza’s oldest gay club, a little outside of the city center is the place to be on Friday and Saturday nights to boogie to pop hits, techno and Latin music.
25 de Mayo 318
Tel: (0261)-4315846

• Open weekend nights
• Cost: AR$20+

0800 Vino—Wine Delivery & Storage

* Editor’s note: This business has closed. Feel free to check out out our wine and food tours in Buenos Aires.

One great thing about Argentina is you can get virtually anything delivered to your home — including wine.

The company 0800-VINO provides a free wine home delivery service for purchases within most of Capital Federal, and by prior arrangement to Greater Buenos Aires and other provinces. For smaller deliveries, a small surcharge applies. Outside of regular delivery times, orders can be placed online or by calling the sommelier’s cell number, and deliveries arranged accordingly.

The 0800 wine cellar is generally closed to the public, except for tasting events, although purchases can be made there by prior arrangement. Serious connoisseurs can even hire space in the cellar to store premium wine. Film director and part-time resident of Buenos Aires, Francis Ford Coppola counts on owner, Nigel Tollerman as his personal sommelier in Argentina and also uses the cellar to store his local collection.

So how do Argentine wines rate on an international scale, and which ones should we buy?

“The Malbec is leading the way amongst the reds and the Torrontés as a distinctive, fresh, aromatic, and economically-priced white. Malbec is developing a deserved reputation as a concentrated, full-bodied wine with complex dark spicy fruit, interesting aging potential and ability to adapt to the diverse local terrains, and an excellent price-quality relation on the international market, particularly in the USA,” says Tollerman.

“The quality at the top-end continues to increase and compete with the best of the New World, and greater consistency is now being achieved across all price points. Apart from Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon (most notably from Luján de Cuyo, Mendoza), Bonarda and Pinot Noir (from Río Negro, Patagonia) are also gaining in prestige and market share,” he says.

And if you’re looking for a great bottle of wine for under $10, Tollerman says there are plenty of options.

“Personally I would go with the Amalaya from Colomé, the Hess Collection winery located in Salta Province, along with the adjacent Tacuil winery— it is the world´s highest, and is a pioneer in high-altitude biodynamic winemaking,” he says. “It´s a distinctive and complex blend of principally Malbec, plus some Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Tannat.”

“Otherwise I might plump for one of the fruit-forward entry-level Malbecs or Bonardas made by Hector Durigutti — a real up-and-coming force in Argentine winemaking.”

–by Dan Colasimone

0800-VINO
Anchorena 695, (corner of Tucumán)
Abasto
Phone (Office): 4966 2500
Cell: 155 771 0259

• Credit Cards Accepted
• Regular Delivery times:

Monday : 10am to 1pm ; 4 to 6pm
Tuesday : 10am to 1pm ; 6 to 8pm
Wednesdays : 10am to 1pm ; 6 to 8pm
Thursday : 10am to 1pm ; 6 to 8pm
Friday : 10am to 1pm ; 6 to 8pm
Saturday : 10am to 1pm ; 7 to 8pm